WHO consultation in view of EB 142: “Approach for the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in the policy development and implementation of nutrition programmes at country level” (Extended deadline: 29 September 2017)

“WHO has launched an online consultation on the WHO Discussion Paper (version dated 11 September 2017) entitled “Draft approach on the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in the policy development and implementation of nutrition programmes at country level”. Member States, organizations of the UN system, and non-State actors are invited to provide feedback in response to the WHO Discussion Paper.

Following this consultation, the Secretariat will finalize the report containing the “Approach for the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in the policy development and implementation of nutrition programmes at country level” (similar in scope and purpose to this discussion paper) to be presented to the Executive Board at its 142nd session in January 2018. The Secretariat will also update the introductory paper and the tool and invite the Executive Board to note the approach and the tool.

Alternatively, relevant parties may send their feedback by email to nutrition@who.int.

The online consultation is open from 11 September to 24 September 2017.

The mandate for this work include:

Resolution WHA65.62 requested the DG to “develop risk assessment, disclosure and management tools to safeguard against possible conflicts of interest in policy development and implementation of nutrition programmes consistent with WHO’s overall policy and practice”

Decision WHA67(9) requested the DG to “convene informal consultations with Member States to complete the work, before the end of 2015, on risk assessment and management tools for conflicts of interest in nutrition, for consideration by Member States at WHA69.

In response to this request, the Secretariat convened a technical consultation on “Addressing and managing conflicts of interest in the planning and delivery of nutrition programmes at country level” in Geneva between 8 and 9 October 2015. The technical consultation brought together experts from different fields such as nutrition, health systems, NCDs, legal, economic and social sciences. In addition, a diversity of stakeholders, including public officials from the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions, experts from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and from multi-stakeholder initiatives, academic researchers, lawyers and experts from other United Nations (UN) agencies working on the area of “Partnerships,” participated. Member States were invited as observers to overview the process.

Following up on the outcomes of the technical consultation, the Secretariat developed a “Draft approach on the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in the policy development and implementation of nutrition programmes at country level”. The approach proposes a methodology that Member States may consider following in their engagement with non-State individuals and institutions (“external actors”) for the prevention and management of conflicts of interest in the area of nutrition. The approach targets government’s officials involved in the development, design, and implementation of public health nutrition policies and programmes.

To develop the proposed approach, WHO has considered different procedures and practices on prevention and management of conflicts of interest including those adopted by UN agencies, governmental bodies, NGOs, and health professional organizations. WHO has also reviewed the scientific literature on conflicts of interest in policy development for NCDs; categories of conflicts of interest, non-state institutions and individuals, purpose and forms of engagement; comparison of corporate tactics between the tobacco and food and beverage industries.

The proposed approach is developed consistent and in line with WHO’s overall policies and practices including, inter alia, the WHO Framework of Engagement with non-State Actors (FENSA).The approach also acknowledges the differences and specificities in addressing conflict of interest in the area of nutrition at country level.

Disclaimer: All feedback received (submitted through the electronic form or by email) will be published on 25 September 2017 on this website and will be attributed to the party which submitted the feedback. The publication of the feedback on this website do not constitute or imply any endorsement whatsoever by WHO.”